“It's Not Just a Bunch of Buildings”: Social Psychological Investment, Sense of Community, and Collective Efficacy in a Multiethnic Low–Income Neighborhood

Abstract

This analysis of social life in a poor, multiethnic public housing neighborhood presents an opportunity for refinement of social disorganization theory. Drawing on data from interviews, focus groups, and participant observations among residents, I find that this neighborhood exhibits substantial collective efficacy, despite social disorganization theory's predictions that the structural conditions of high poverty and racial and ethnic diversity result in low collective efficacy. I explicate two social psychological investment strategies—sense of ownership and symbolic representation—that appear to facilitate a sense of community and ultimately collective efficacy, helping to explain this apparent anomaly. I argue that even in the presence of structural disadvantage, having a strong sense of community provides a basis for beneficial action on behalf of the collective because it constitutes a source of shared expectations about values and norms in the neighborhood. These findings suggest refinements to the social disorganization framework, but also provide foundational ideas for policy interventions that may improve the social lives of residents in disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Post-socialist Development and Rehabilitation of Large Housing Estates in Central and Eastern Europe: A Review

“…In addition, since the homeowners who perceive their neighbourhood as a good place to live are far more likely to initiate and participate in do-it-yourself activities in maintenance [67], reaching a higher dwelling quality in large housing estates may also provide benefits in terms of residents' attitude towards further maintenance and their motivation to preserve the upgraded living environment. In relation to this, some researches emphasize the role of sense of community, neighbourhood attachment, collective efficiency [68] and social capital in the rehabilitation process [69].…”

The Promise of Property: Legal Optimism and Collective Efficacy in Chicago’s Urban Agriculture District

“…Here, the article identifies a new connection between local property institutions and collective efficacy. Previous studies have found that collective efficacy is positively associated with individual homeownership (Sampson 2012), and with the sense of ownership that gardening instills in renters (Walton 2016). These studies suggest that individual ownership, or simply a sense of ownership, helps foster neighborhood collective efficacy.…”

Friendly Communities and Outdoor Spaces in Contexts of Urban Population Decline

“…This supports the study hypothesis that neighbourhoods' shrinkage can lead to a stronger desire for community cohesion and for the spaces that might reinforce social interaction. This increased social interaction, potentially conducive to higher levels of social capital and collective efficacy, can, in turn, reinforce the processes of neighbourhood safety and upkeep, with positive consequences in place attachment and potentially in neighbourhood desirability [16,[19][20][21], although community attachment alone, according to Mahmoudi Farahani [58], can be an enhancing factor for a sense of safety, identity, participation, mental health, and wellbeing.…”

“…This type of social relationship is the basis for good levels of social capital as well as collective efficacy at the neighbourhood level, that is, a strong social network of trust and mutual aid [15] that can, in turn, lead to a strong capacity to work together for a common good/objective that can better serve the community at stake [16][17][18]. This capacity to work together for a common good-collective efficacy-will enhance levels of order and upkeep [19], which are considered two of the five key factors for the image of a city for the public, according to Nasar [20], and place attachment [21]. Collective efficacy is also positively associated with lower levels of violence [22] and crime [23], a problem reported in several depopulating neighbourhoods [24].…”